A Wail Of Two Cities

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of times…”
You probably recognise the iconic opening line from Charles Dickens’ most famous and successful work, A Tale of Two Cities. Although it was first published in 1859 and concerned events that happened almost a century before that, it’s central themes are still hugely relevant today.

Dickens viewed power as a conduit for corruption. Throughout the novel, he exposes his three central characters as being corrupt individuals who begin abusing their power as time goes on.

“The best of times” refers to the aristocracy living in London and Paris who, in the late 18th Century, enjoyed vast wealth, influence and power. The peasants, however, were living in “the worst of times,” – particularly in France, where they endured extreme poverty, hunger and a lack of basic necessities, and were subjected to oppressive rule by the aristocracy.

Fast forward to today, and there’s definitely a case for “the more things change, the more they stay they same.”

Particularly, it seems, in South Africa.

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